Portable motion-picture-projecting machine.



, W. J. BRANIGAN. PORTABLE MOTION PICTURE PROJEOTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.31,1913. I

, Patented Mar. 10, 19M

WILLIAM J BRANIGAN, 0F PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

PORTABLE MOTION-PICTURE PROJECTING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 10, 1914.,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, IL IAM J. BRANI- GAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have 'invented a new and useful Portable Motion- Picture-Projecting.Machine, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to motion picture apparatus of that type utilizing an intermittently operating film strip.

Motion picture machines as iheretofore constructed for the use of standard film strips have been of such size and weight as to require considerable care and expense in their transportation and the use of special facilities in order to utilize the machines. For this reason their field of use has been greatly limited.

One of the objects of the present invention is to so arrange and proportion the parts of the machine that. the same can be stored compactly in a case and conveniently carried, it being possible to set up the machine quickly ready for use so that it can be used not only for ordinary public exhibition purposesbut can be also set up in offices, residences, schools and the like for business, entertainment and educational purposes.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will'appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed, can be made within the scope of what is claimed, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings the pre-- ferred form of the invention has been shown. A

In said drawings :-Figure '1. is a side elevation of the machine certain parts being broken away. Fig.2 is a top plan view. Fig. 3 is a section on line A -B Fig. 1, the shutter being shown in elevation.v Fig. 4 is a section on line CD Fig. 2, showing the gear case with its face plate removed and the gear shafts. in section.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference 1 designates a base which may be curved as shown and this base is provided with a laterally extending arm 2. The base Application filed March 31, 1913. Serial No. 758,028.

is provided, adjacent its ends with split sleeves 3 and the free end of arm 2 is likewise providedwith a split sleeve 4;. Each .of these sleeves is adapted to receive the compass. Each split sleeve 3 and 4 is provided with suitable means whereby it. can

be clamped upon the upper end of the leg 5 therein. In the drawings, clamping screws 6 have been shown provided for this purpose.

Securtl upon the base 1 is a gear case 7 having a removable face plate 8 upon the inner side thereof. A bracket 9 extends laterally from the face plate and carries a barrel 10 in which a lens tube 11 is adjustably mounted, the adjustment of this tube being effected in any manner desired. Directly back of the lens tube is a laterally extending plate 12 likewise extending from the face plate 8 and formed with an angular orifice 13 the center of which is in alinement with the longitudinal axis of the lens tube 11.

Arranged directly back of the plate 12 is a guide plate 14 connected at its upper and lower ends to the late 12 by means of posts 15 or the like. T is guide plate 14: has side ribs 16 between which the film strip is adapted to move. 'An opening or light passage 17 is formed in the guide plate v3,4 and is preferably of the same size as theo ening 13, the center of this opening or light passage 17 being in alinement with the longitudinal axis of the lens tube 11.

Hingedly connected to the face plate 8 is a back plate 18 having a light passage or opening 19 the center of which is in aline-x ment with the longitudinal axis of the lens tube 11. This hinged platemay be secured in active position inuny preferred manner,

as by' means of a pivoted latch 20 mounted on a post 21 and adapted to enter a slot 22 formed in the hingedplate 18 so as thus to bind the plate against the post 21. A clamping frame 23 is provided with slidably mounted in the hinged plate"? 18, there being springs 25 mounted on these pins and bearing against the hinged plate 18 and the frame 23 so as thus to hold the frame normally pressed into the space between the guide ribs 16 so as to clamp a film strip 3 laterally from the gear case 4 against the guide plate 14. The opening in the clamping frame 23 is similar to the openings in the plates 12 and 14.

A post 26 extends rearwardly from the arm 2 and is designed to support a lamp. This lamp, which is shown at 27, is preferably mounted on a standard 28 which is detachably and adjustably secured to the post 26 so that the front end of the lamp can thus be removably held directly back of the aperture in the plate 18, as shown inFigs. 1 and 2.

The plate 12 has a depending arm 29 in which is journaled one end of a shaft 30 which extends into the casing 7 and is provided with a star wheel 31 such as commonly employed in machines of this char acter. Secured to this shaft 30 directly below the plate 12 is a sprocket drum 32 and a post 33 is located below the sprocket drum 32 and has arms 34: mounted to swing thereon, these arms carrying an idler roll 35 designed to hold a film strip in engagement with the sprocket drum 32. A spring 36 is mounted on the post 33 and serves to press the roll 35 yieldingly against the film strip when interposed between the roll 35 and the sprocket drum' 32.

l'kI l operating shaft 37 is journaled in the case 7 i and its face plate 8 and also in a tubular post 38 provided therefor and this .s-ha ft may be rotated in any suitable manr, as by means of a crank 39. Secured to shaft 37 within case 7 is a drive gear 40 which meshes with a smaller gear 41. 'A larger gear 42 meshes with another large gear 4 secuned to the shaft 44; of the upper sprocl drum 45 of :the apparatus, this sprocket drum being located in front of the u perportion. of plate 12 and being adapted to engage the film strip so as to feed it to' th e guide plate 14 and the holding frame .23., An idlerroll46 is arranged to press the filmstrip into engagement with the sprocket drum a5 and can be mounted in the same inanner 'as the roll 35.11ereinbefore described. Gr jear 40.also meshes with a small gear 47 secured to the shaft 48 of a sprocket drum 49, this sprocket drum being located under the lens tube 1 1 and. being adapted to engage the film strip and feedit toward a takeup reel at a predeterminedspeed This sprocket drum 49 has an idler. roll 50, locatedadj acent thereto for the .e of holding the film strip int? it fiwith the sprocket drum.

n be nounted in the same 2 rolls'fdeand-e'i' hereinbefow referred to. Gea'r. 42 'mesheswith a small 'g aeti secured toashaft 52 which extends p I and is jourat ts" outerend in an arm 53 extendiiig 'downwardly from plate 12. A disk 54:

i s s'ecuredto shaft 52 within case 7 and carries a: pin 55 for actuating the star wheel 31. fl' retaining 56 =also.rotates with shaft 52 and serves to hold the star wheel against rotation except when pin 55 is in engagement with said star wheel. This construction is the same as that commonly employed in other machines of this class and does not shutter is so shaped that a Vertical plane passing through the center of the shutter and through the centers of the openings 13 and 17 will intersect the shutter along a straight line parallel with the plate 12 as will be apparent by referring to Fig. 1. The lower portion of the shutter extends under the lower end portion of the lens tube 11 and thus it will be seen that the parts of the mechanism can be-eompactly arranged without interference with the operation of the shutter.

An arm 68 extends upwardly from the gear case 7 and carries a laterally extending spindle 69 on which the reel 7 O is adapted to rotate. Another arm 70 extends downwardly and forwardly from the gear case and carries a shaft 7]. to which a takeup reel 72 is adapted to be keyed in any suit able manner. This shaft has a pulley 73 adapted to receive motion, through a belt 74, from a pulley 75 secured to and rotating with the shaft 44. Pulley 73 is not keyed on shaft 71 but is held thereon by friction so that by gearing up the parts to cause reel 72 to pull on a film strip faster thanthe strip can be withdrawn from the sprocket drum 49, the pulley 73 will slip on shaft 71 and thus cause a constant drag upon the shaft with the result that the reel 7 2, which is being held back by the film strip, will caulse the film strip to wind tightly upon the rec In the drawings, the film strip has been shown at F and extends from the reel 70 downwardly under the sprocket drum 45 and is looped over the idler roll 46 so thus to feed downwardly between the guide plate 14 and .the clamping frame 23. The

film strip passes between the sprocket drum 68 and the idler roll 35, thence over roll 50 and under sprocket drum L9 to the takeup reel 72, a guide roller 76 being preferably located below the sprocket drum t9 so as to properly guide the film strip to the takeup reel 72.

It will be apparent that when the drive shaft 37 is rotated, motion will be transmitted therefrom through the several gears to the different sprocket drums and the starwheel 31will be operated intermittently by the pin 55 so as thus to produce an intermittent movement of the sprocket drum-32 and, consequently, an intermittent feed-ofthe like and by placing a foot in this stirrup and pressing downwardly, the operator of the machine can hold the same steadily while crank 39 is being rotated.

Importance is attached to the fact that the device herein described is so constructed that the various parts thereof can be detached and the machine thus compactly stored within a case so that it can be 0011- veniently carried. Furthermore the machine can be quickly set up and by employ ing an incandescent lamp having a suitable reflector, the apparatus can be successfully operated in small rooms or wherever itis not necessary to project pictures over ten or twelve feet. By using arc lights, however, the machine can be used for projecting pictures considerable distances and will be found as efficient for entertainment purposes as the ordinary larger and heavier machines commonly employed at this time.

In order to facilitate the operation 01 the machine, a-fly wheel 79 may be secured to one of the shafts as, for example, shaft 52.

Any suitable framing mechanism, indicated generally at 63, may be used in connection with t 1e machine.

WVhat is claimed is p 1. A knock-down portable motion picture projectin machine including a base, a gear case on t 1e base, film supporting and actuating means extending from said case, supporting legs detachably connected to the base, and a lamp detachably connected to. the base.

2. A motion picture projecting machine including a casing, upper and lower reels, a

film guide extending laterally from and located entirely outside of the casing, film sprockets extending laterally from and located entirely outside of the casing, means within the casing for actuating the sprockets, a bracket extending laterally from and located entirely outside of the casing, and a lens tube carried by the bracket.

In testimony that I clai the foregoing as my own, I have hereto flixed my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

WILLIAM J. BRANIGAN.

Witnesses SELINA VVmLsoN, I. E. SIMPSON. 

